Sky Bet has reportedly invested £1m ($1.33m) in the launch of a new responsible gambling campaign aimed at educating all 72 English Football League (EFL) clubs about the risks of gambling.
Over the next football season, the program, provided by Epic Risk Management on behalf of Sky Bet, will present information to players and staff over a day’s training on gambling-related issues, reports The Drum.
The program will begin at Birmingham City, Norwich City, Charlton Athletic, Brentford, Accrington Stanley, Carlisle United, Lincoln City, Newport County, Oldham Athletic and Portsmouth during the off-season period.
“By funding such a vital service for every club, we want to play our part in reducing gambling-related harm amongst their players and wider staff. I firmly believe that responsible operators can add value to sport through partnerships like this,” said Richard Flint, CEO of Sky betting and gaming.
Senet Group leads the way
In 2015, the Senet Group, the UK body dedicated to addressing problem gambling through consumer information programs, launched their “When the Fun Stops, Stop” campaign in a bid to promote responsible gambling as well as to ensure that the marketing of gambling is also socially responsible. The campaign has reached a significant number of regular gamblers.
According to a report from Senet Group, independent research conducted last year found that 82% of regular gamblers have seen the campaign. Additionally, 33%, or five million adults, confirmed that it has helped them to gamble more responsibly since the campaign was launched.
The research also found that the campaign is being carried out by around 40% of UK gambling companies, with the UK body appealing to the entire UK gambling sector to adopt the campaign.
Operators launch responsible gambling campaigns
With gambling-related harm becoming a factor that countries want to crack down on, gambling operators are taking proactive steps at adopting responsible gambling campaigns.
In February, the Irish gambling industry came together to support the launch of the first-ever Responsible Gambling Week Ireland. Seen as the most socially responsible gambling campaign in Ireland, the advertisement of it was simply: “A great tip – know when to stop”.
According to the Irish Bookmakers Association, the aim was to start conversations on what it means to gamble responsibly. Some of those from the gambling industry that came out to support the campaign included betting shops, online betting sites, online casino sites, horse/greyhound tracks, arcades, gaming clubs, and the Tote.
Independent charity GambleAware has teamed up with English Premier League football club Crystal Palace to highlight the issues regarding gambling-related harm in football. In April, it was reported that the two have agreed to produce advertisements and promotional material designed to raise awareness about the risks of gambling. Crystal Palace is reported to be the first professional football club to make this commitment.
Last June, an area in Inverness in Scotland became the focus of attention after it launched a responsible gambling campaign in the area of Merkinch, believed to have been the first of its kind in the country. The initiative, funded by the Association of British Bookmakers in Scotland, was supported by local charity For The Right Reasons, which offers support to recovering drug addicts. Bookmakers Ladbrokes and William Hill also supported the campaign.
In September, the New South Wales government in Australia launched its “Betiquette” responsible gambling campaign in its latest advert targeting problem gambling.
These are just a few of the responsible gambling campaigns that have launched in recent months, which highlights the need to tackle problem gambling in a growing industry. With more action being taken, it’s hoped that with more education it will produce more responsibility among gamblers and organizations.
